The Vince Cable debacle usefully demonstrates why PR (proportional representation) and its promise of never ending coalitions is likely to be a bad thing for the Brits. We simply do not get the idea that a coalition - which by its nature is made up from people who fundamentally disagree about many things, and for whom the idea of "pulling together in the national interest" is not uppermost.
Coalition politics also means that lightweight amateurs such as Cable cannot be fired summarily as we would have once assumed, but has to be kept on in a reduced capacity as a sop to his faction while he is rehabilitated.
And this tale is a further example of the impossibility of discretion, secrecy and any sort of wool-pulling in the age of completely uncontrollable electronic eaves-dropping.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Sunday, December 05, 2010
What sort of society do we want?
It's been a while, and I am grateful to my beloved reader for enquiring after the absence of posts, but it seems like an appropriate period in which to allow dust to settle as the coalition took its bearings and made its first moves. It's been an interesting period, in which Labour have been presented with an open political goal on many occasions, but Ed Milliband has justified every concern that his embarrassing appointment by the Trade Unions would be a brief and dull one.
However, underlying all the distractions arising from the stark financial reality that there really is no money, there is a sense of some effort be exerted to get back some of the ground lost to Labour's "project" via control of education and the BBC.
The issue inspiring this piece stems from the very real perception that a pendulum has swung in our society, thanks to the tireless "reforming" efforts where some now feel that it's almost necessary to hold Straight Pride marches in order to re-establish the idea that it's still actually legal and permissible to promote heterosexuality, and families with married parents of different sexes.
It's a fascinating conundrum that much of the 20th century was spent in conflicts where millions were killed to promote democracy based on "majority" rule, yet we now find ourselves in the thrall of a cabal of vociferous minorities that no one voted for, but that have managed to influence our society through hijacking the liberal media and thereby gain effective control of the BBC's ability to undertake massive social engineering projects at the licence payer's expense.
Indeed, the "majority view" is deemed pure heresy to the chattering classes and dismissed as the grubby populism of the tabloid press. Freedom of speech and expression - coupled with the right to reply - should come ahead of attempting to discourage others from saying what they think, and thereby enriching our connection with the real world through the use of "direct" language.
Unlike the mind-controlling efforts of politicians whose existence now depends on offending the least number of people, no longer daring to try and inspire the majority, I would prefer people to make their own minds up on all issues, as the result of taking part in a big debate where anyone can say anything about anything.
By all means engage in debate and criticise an idea, but not the way the idea is expressed, or the debate will always be restricted to an articulate and fluent minority (aka "chattering classes") who are not easily ashamed by self-conscious concerns of their literacy.
The guardians of political correctness tend to chide in that wonderfully condescending "school mistress" mode that has become the trademark psychology of mind control projects such as "Common Purpose" over the past 15 years. As a result, political correction has become the dominant hobgoblin of the feeble minded.
Kids protesting today have only ever known a UK dominated by the left's woolly notions of the "tolerant society". As one who has been around longer, let me assure you that the past 13 years have been a period of unprecedented stupidity, where an ever-expanding welfare state was used to buy elections, using the fairy money that ran out.
This "beyond criticism" welfare state, far removed from financial reality, was a perfect place to nurture and promote the ideas of entitlement that spawned vociferous minorities, and their desire to promote inclusivity and positive discrimination of all sorts, where an individual's abilities were of secondary importance to their score on the scale of PC acceptability.
And now, in order to repay the cost of Labour's failure, we are entering a far more realistic and brutal period where the rules of the life game are going to be dictated by the need to compete with the likes of the Chinese for basic commodities such as food and energy.
Some of us might not like all the consequences of a return to genuine majority rule, but in order to create and manage a society that can survive the challenges coming our way over the next years, we will need to be carried along by genuine majority opinion and not divided by political correctness in all its myriad distractions.
However, underlying all the distractions arising from the stark financial reality that there really is no money, there is a sense of some effort be exerted to get back some of the ground lost to Labour's "project" via control of education and the BBC.
The issue inspiring this piece stems from the very real perception that a pendulum has swung in our society, thanks to the tireless "reforming" efforts where some now feel that it's almost necessary to hold Straight Pride marches in order to re-establish the idea that it's still actually legal and permissible to promote heterosexuality, and families with married parents of different sexes.
It's a fascinating conundrum that much of the 20th century was spent in conflicts where millions were killed to promote democracy based on "majority" rule, yet we now find ourselves in the thrall of a cabal of vociferous minorities that no one voted for, but that have managed to influence our society through hijacking the liberal media and thereby gain effective control of the BBC's ability to undertake massive social engineering projects at the licence payer's expense.
Indeed, the "majority view" is deemed pure heresy to the chattering classes and dismissed as the grubby populism of the tabloid press. Freedom of speech and expression - coupled with the right to reply - should come ahead of attempting to discourage others from saying what they think, and thereby enriching our connection with the real world through the use of "direct" language.
Unlike the mind-controlling efforts of politicians whose existence now depends on offending the least number of people, no longer daring to try and inspire the majority, I would prefer people to make their own minds up on all issues, as the result of taking part in a big debate where anyone can say anything about anything.
By all means engage in debate and criticise an idea, but not the way the idea is expressed, or the debate will always be restricted to an articulate and fluent minority (aka "chattering classes") who are not easily ashamed by self-conscious concerns of their literacy.
The guardians of political correctness tend to chide in that wonderfully condescending "school mistress" mode that has become the trademark psychology of mind control projects such as "Common Purpose" over the past 15 years. As a result, political correction has become the dominant hobgoblin of the feeble minded.
Kids protesting today have only ever known a UK dominated by the left's woolly notions of the "tolerant society". As one who has been around longer, let me assure you that the past 13 years have been a period of unprecedented stupidity, where an ever-expanding welfare state was used to buy elections, using the fairy money that ran out.
This "beyond criticism" welfare state, far removed from financial reality, was a perfect place to nurture and promote the ideas of entitlement that spawned vociferous minorities, and their desire to promote inclusivity and positive discrimination of all sorts, where an individual's abilities were of secondary importance to their score on the scale of PC acceptability.
And now, in order to repay the cost of Labour's failure, we are entering a far more realistic and brutal period where the rules of the life game are going to be dictated by the need to compete with the likes of the Chinese for basic commodities such as food and energy.
Some of us might not like all the consequences of a return to genuine majority rule, but in order to create and manage a society that can survive the challenges coming our way over the next years, we will need to be carried along by genuine majority opinion and not divided by political correctness in all its myriad distractions.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Angela Merkel declares death of German multiculturalism
"Angela Merkel declares death of German multiculturalism - Angela Merkel said it had been an illusion to think Germans and foreign workers could live happily side by side" was announced on the BBC News Channel right before one of their Radio 4 promotional break items extolling the delights of British multiculturalism.
Interesting times ahead. Will austerity reduce the scope for luxuries like self delusion?
Interesting times ahead. Will austerity reduce the scope for luxuries like self delusion?
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Not inspired
The Party conferences came and went. The BBC's institutionalised left leaning staffing continues to shine through despite a growing awareness from above that this has become even more painfully obvious since the election. The left's focus on Nick Robinson as the token closet Tory is as tedious as it is pointless, he's outnumbered about 100:1 and he's not exactly rabid in the same terms that his colleagues cannot help stop themselves fawning over all people and things "leftie". The personal histories of 90% of front line BBC management and front people places them firmly in the conservatory with Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, with the lead piping, dagger, gun and anything else you could think of, at the time of the economic catastrophe. It's a serious problem that will have to be dealt with.
At least David Cameron took the opportunity during his main speech at the conference to remind everyone that the mess is the result of Gordon Brown 's mismanagement over 13 years, ending with Liam Byrne's classic "prawn sandwich" moment for the new boys, with his letter pointing out that there was no money. Alan Johnson's remark about needing to read "Teach yourself Economics" to help him tackle his new role as Shadow Chancellor, apparently for absolutely no better reasons than his background is the antithesis of his Eton educated opposite. What with all the fellow travelling siblings and spouses, the Labour Party seems more dynastic than Brenda and the Windsor Firm.
So it's politics as usual, and the best interests of the UK, as usual, will continue to suffer as a result - just as the country suffered hugely during Blair's reign from the total absence of a plausible opposition, so the Coalition faces a collection of amateurs and incompetents without any idea of policy; albeit that doesn't actually stop the enthusiasm of the BBC to provide airtime to the has-beens. There aren't even any flighty Libdems to flit about and make outrageous promises that they would never need to back up.
Maybe David Milliband will be persuaded to resurrect SDP2010 by the Blairites and the malcontents of the LibDems. Would Cameron feel obliged to "go to the country" and seek a further mandate, or would the next step be a crisis "government of national unity" where all the parties had to become involved, simply because the shambles and mess is so completely gargantuan that there is no option?
We're getting fed up with living in "interesting times". Bring on the boredom, please.
At least David Cameron took the opportunity during his main speech at the conference to remind everyone that the mess is the result of Gordon Brown 's mismanagement over 13 years, ending with Liam Byrne's classic "prawn sandwich" moment for the new boys, with his letter pointing out that there was no money. Alan Johnson's remark about needing to read "Teach yourself Economics" to help him tackle his new role as Shadow Chancellor, apparently for absolutely no better reasons than his background is the antithesis of his Eton educated opposite. What with all the fellow travelling siblings and spouses, the Labour Party seems more dynastic than Brenda and the Windsor Firm.
So it's politics as usual, and the best interests of the UK, as usual, will continue to suffer as a result - just as the country suffered hugely during Blair's reign from the total absence of a plausible opposition, so the Coalition faces a collection of amateurs and incompetents without any idea of policy; albeit that doesn't actually stop the enthusiasm of the BBC to provide airtime to the has-beens. There aren't even any flighty Libdems to flit about and make outrageous promises that they would never need to back up.
Maybe David Milliband will be persuaded to resurrect SDP2010 by the Blairites and the malcontents of the LibDems. Would Cameron feel obliged to "go to the country" and seek a further mandate, or would the next step be a crisis "government of national unity" where all the parties had to become involved, simply because the shambles and mess is so completely gargantuan that there is no option?
We're getting fed up with living in "interesting times". Bring on the boredom, please.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
We're still here...
Please excuse the lack of noise from TMP, but we're still waiting for something significant to emerge from the maelstrom of presumption and guesswork that results from a coalition where the blending of two manifestos remains wonderfully conflicted and unclear.
The Labour leadership election is - as widely predicted - another big yawn, despite the BBC's efforts to award it an importance it does not warrant. Who ever wins it will have little option but to be doing the Trade Union's bidding because they ain't getting funded from anywhere else.
The Liberal democrat conference reminds us all once more that the LibDems are mostly only concerned to be regarded as the "thinking Trot's Labour Party", with more visceral socialism on parade than has been seen at any recent Labour Party conference.
Cheery things to look forward to include Cameron's promised bonfire of Quangos and reduction of the bonkers excesses of H&S. Other than that, it looks like all pain.
So overall, the world is in a very awkward place. The "private sector" is still overwhelmed by the usual behemoths like banks, telcos and "globalised businesses", who continue to get away with operating cartels and monopolies that are clearly not in the interests of consumers. Less crucially, but still significantly, US media companies are desperate to redefine their roles in a world where there is more media accessible to more people than ever. Efforts like http://bit.ly/dxOsOc to turn a TV show into an immersive lifestyle experience seems to be trying to adapt the sort addictive environment that is apparent amongst the followings of cult computer games. You only have to mention the word "addictive" within earshot of a marketing person and a campaign is born. Please God, grant the human race the ability to resist this sort of mind-numbing claptrap.
Just in case the summer doldrums have lulled us into a false sense of calm, we learn that August produced the UK's biggest ever PSBR and the worst ever trade imbalance. It's still desperate out there. And it is still pretty much entirely the fault of Gordon Brown's 13 years of fumbled fiscal misdirection where the national assets were frittered away to buy 3 elections.
So it's a good time to sit back and observe.
The Labour leadership election is - as widely predicted - another big yawn, despite the BBC's efforts to award it an importance it does not warrant. Who ever wins it will have little option but to be doing the Trade Union's bidding because they ain't getting funded from anywhere else.
The Liberal democrat conference reminds us all once more that the LibDems are mostly only concerned to be regarded as the "thinking Trot's Labour Party", with more visceral socialism on parade than has been seen at any recent Labour Party conference.
Cheery things to look forward to include Cameron's promised bonfire of Quangos and reduction of the bonkers excesses of H&S. Other than that, it looks like all pain.
So overall, the world is in a very awkward place. The "private sector" is still overwhelmed by the usual behemoths like banks, telcos and "globalised businesses", who continue to get away with operating cartels and monopolies that are clearly not in the interests of consumers. Less crucially, but still significantly, US media companies are desperate to redefine their roles in a world where there is more media accessible to more people than ever. Efforts like http://bit.ly/dxOsOc to turn a TV show into an immersive lifestyle experience seems to be trying to adapt the sort addictive environment that is apparent amongst the followings of cult computer games. You only have to mention the word "addictive" within earshot of a marketing person and a campaign is born. Please God, grant the human race the ability to resist this sort of mind-numbing claptrap.
Just in case the summer doldrums have lulled us into a false sense of calm, we learn that August produced the UK's biggest ever PSBR and the worst ever trade imbalance. It's still desperate out there. And it is still pretty much entirely the fault of Gordon Brown's 13 years of fumbled fiscal misdirection where the national assets were frittered away to buy 3 elections.
So it's a good time to sit back and observe.
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